To be fair, vegetarianism isn't unhealthy (or necessarily healthy--you could still eat Oreos all day), but leaping into a rapid dietary change out of fear might be. Vegetarianism works in India because there's an established tradition of cooking varied foods that meet nutritional needs and are tasty. Stereotypical American vegetarianism is 1/3 rabbit-food, 1/3 gooey cheesy pasta, and 1/3 synthetic meat-substitutes.